Air 
Force Undersecretary Erin Conaton is urging airmen to come forward and share their best ideas on how the Defense Department could operate more efficiently. “The Air Force strongly supports the [Defense] Secretary’s overall campaign for greater efficiency, and I encourage each of you to submit your ideas for consideration,” she wrote in an electronic message distributed to all airmen. Earlier this month, Defense Secretary Robert Gates established a program called Innovation for New Value, Efficiency, and Savings Tomorrow, or INVEST. It is designed to give US military personnel and civilian defense employees an avenue for submitting their thoughts. Wanted are ideas that are “thorough, cost effective, low-risk, simple to implement, yield multi-faceted savings, and have a high return on investment,” according to a USAF release Tuesday. The submittal deadline is Sept. 24. DOD is providing cash prizes for the 25 ideas judged best. (INVEST website)
The Air Force and Boeing agreed to a nearly $2.4 billion contract for a new lot of KC-46 aerial tankers on Nov. 21. The deal, announced by the Pentagon, is for 15 new aircraft in Lot 11 at a cost of $2.389 billion—some $159 million per tail.